Of Friendship
by rinimt
Summary: Chapter 6 Added! When more characters enter the .hackSign picture, things go less than according to plan. Please RR!
1. Chapter 1 Log In

Of Friendship Chapter 1  
  
~*~  
  
Summary: When more characters enter the .hack//Sign picture, things go less than according to plan.  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: I finally decided to write a story for this section. This is based around the events of the show, but I've mixed in my own characters. This should turn out interesting. Oh, and where I got the name for this story: It just popped into my head. It might have something to do with it later. Also, I do have some grudges against CERTAIN people in the show (Like Sora), and I'll try to portray their 'annoyingness' in this.  
  
Anyways, enjoy!  
  
~*~  
  
Disclaimer: I only own the original characters. Bandai owns everything else.  
  
~*~  
  
A fourteen-year-old walked down the long store shelves. She saw several other games that she was sure kids were into. But no, she was here for one purpose.  
  
The place, her hometown. The capital of Montana. Who is she? A going-into- freshman kid with a love for RPG games. What's her life like? To put it simply, EVERYTHING in her life was perfect. A loving mom and dad, great friends at school, and plenty of extra money. What does she look like? A perfect physic, golden blonde hair that flows down barely past her shoulders, eyes the color of a clear blue sky, all in a 5'6" tall body.  
  
This girl, she was on a mission in this store. What store? The ever-popular Wal-Mart. At the moment, she was walking down the aisle of Computer Games, looking for one in particular.  
  
She clicked her tongue twice, looking for the cover. A friend had showed it to her, and had also agreed to come with her. This friend had gone to look at the new stock of PS2 Games for a minute. Her parents were off looking for school supplies a month too early.  
  
"Oy! Haven't you found it yet?"  
  
"I know you showed it to me, but I can't remember, Reyla!"  
  
A 5'3" girl walked up beside her friend. She had waist-long, wavy dark brown hair. Her eyes were the color of rubies that have been shined over and over.  
  
"Teria, it's right here, for heaven's sake!" Reyla sighed, pulling the game off of the shelf.  
  
At that moment, her parents chose to join them. After going to check out the computer made especially for this game, they proceeded to the checkout.  
  
"Another one? Do you have the virtual reality helmet?" the checker asked.  
  
"Oh, oops, let me grab it real..." Reyla started.  
  
"No matter, it's right here," the checker stated, grabbed the box for the helmet.  
  
Teria's parents payed for the game, and they left the store. She couldn't wait to get this set up in her room. After she had finally finished redecorating, her parents had rewired the phone cord hooks in her room. After a quick call to one of her other friends, saying that she finally got it, she took it out of the box.  
  
While Reyla worked on hooking up the computer on Teria's desk, Teria opened up the game and grabbed the manual. She started flipping through it, finding hardly anything interesting in it.  
  
"Make sure you read the section about character job selection, and the look. I didn't and it took forever to figure out what the heck was going on!"  
  
Teria laughed as a doorbell rang through the two-story house. "Probably just some person selling candy," Teria figured, but got up to investigate anyway, bringing the manual with her.  
  
"I'm sorry, but we aren't interesting," came her mother's crystal-clear voice from the entranceway.  
  
"Mom, what's going on?" Teria asked, finally reaching the hallway.  
  
After her mom shrugged her off, Teria went back to her room to find Reyla STILL working with it.  
  
"I'll try and help you as much as I can, but it won't be easy. Maybe I should head home after you set up your character?"  
  
"What, so you can meet me there?"  
  
"That's what I was hoping on. Besides, I promised someone I'd meet them in Mac Anu and introduce you to them."  
  
Teria pulled out an extra chair and sat on it. Finally reaching the section about character development, she started reading on the classes.  
  
"Hey Reyla, what class are you?"  
  
"I'm a Heavy Blade."  
  
Teria looked at the section marked 'Heavy Blade' and examined the designs. Figuring that she didn't want to be that, Teria flipped to the Heavy Axeman section for the fun of it. When she saw the design for the female, she gasped.  
  
"What?"  
  
"The Heavy Axeman female class is... is... beautiful. That's definitely what I'm going to be!"  
  
"Suit yourself," Reyla shrugged, going back to the computer.  
  
After another thirty minutes passed, the computer was finally put together. Reyla sighed, putting down the tools that they had been provided with.  
  
"Make sure you call Sheina before you log in. She'll want to see your character as well!"  
  
"Got it, see ya online then!" Teria exclaimed, letting Reyla out of her room.  
  
When Reyla had left, Teria picked up the phone and punched in Sheina's number.  
  
"Hello?" came a voice on the other side.  
  
"Is Sheina there?" Teria asked, carrying the phone back to the kitchen.  
  
Teria opened the refrigerator as she waited for Sheina to get on the line. After finding that she had gone through their supply of snacks again, she went back to her room. Picking up her phone, she turned off the other one, and took it back to where it belonged.  
  
"I'm so sorry Teria, but Sheina's playing right now. Should I leave a message for her?"  
  
"If you could, could you tell her to go to Mac Anu and wait for myself to get there. Tell her that Reyla will be there a bit later. Online, of course."  
  
"Whatever that means, I'll tell her. Goodbye."  
  
Teria hung up her phone and dashed back to her room, barely avoiding a head- on collision with her dad. Putting the phone on the hook, she grabbed the CD for the game.  
  
'The World' was written in bold letters across it, just as it was on the box. Walking over to her new computer, she popped the CD in and slipped on the virtual reality helmet.  
  
'Voice recognition, this is just perfect! Now only I can play with this helmet!'  
  
"Please state your player ID and Character name."  
  
'Hmm...' Teria thought, thinking hard on what she should put.  
  
"Player ID is Teria," she replied, watching as what she said appeared on the screen.  
  
'Forget the keyboard!' she grinned, now thinking hard on her character name.  
  
"Character Name, Reisa."  
  
The letters 'R-e-i-s-a' appeared on the screen. Next came the character type selection. Instantly saying 'Heavy Axeman', she started to browse.  
  
For her outfit, she choose a top that showed a perfectly fit stomach, seeing as that was mainly the only choice she had. Next, she choose a plain white skirt to match the top. Choosing a medium-sized pair of wings, as was required for all Heavy Axe Females; she next turned to the headpiece.  
  
Instead of a jewel, she choose a spiral paint on her forehead. For her hair color, golden blonde was her definite choice. When the game asked if she wished for a halo or not, it took her a while to decide. Finally opting not to, she watched as the game logged in to show her desktop.  
  
'Sweet!'  
  
A information e-mail was there from CC Corporation, USA. After briefly skimming through it, she found the names of the servers, which she placed in the storage part of her mind.  
  
Looking at the news was too boring, not finding anything worthwhile. She quickly saved the game as a just-in-case so that she didn't have to do all that again.  
  
Finally choosing the option that said 'The World', she was brought to another screen. This one had the message board on it. After looking through them all, and once again, finding nothing of interest, she decided to make her first log in.  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: Well, did you enjoy it? If so, please do review! And, what does everything think of Teria so far? And Reyla? Also, I've seen all the episodes shown in the states so far (up to 19), so I have a good idea of what's going on. I also have up to Episode 14 on DVD.  
  
Also, this story is partly based on me, but mainly not. The most major change in here was the name (I ALWAYS used Erin in the past). A lot of it is the same, expect for certain parts (like the fact of a two-story house. That's totally false). And the fact that she has more friends than me. Also, yes, the show characters are appearing next chapter, plus I haven't figured out Sheina's class yet. Probably Wavemaster (figure the BT style, okay?).  
  
Anyways, please review! 


	2. Chapter 2 Role Play

Of Friendship Chapter 2  
  
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A/N: Okay, yes, this is going to be a once a week update deal. Which means, I'll keep on having to story more show information between postings. Anyways, Teria is now logged in, but wait til you find out who she meets!  
  
~*~  
  
Disclaimer: Nothing has changed since last chapter. I swear!  
  
~*~  
  
The rush of a busy city filled her ears. Blinding light covered her. In the distance, people were milling around. Teria breathed in the fresh, clean air as the sounds filled her ears.  
  
"Hello there!"  
  
The voice made her jump and look around. She spotted a man almost entirely painted in blue with some white stripes running through it, and barely wearing anything. A mere skirt was all.  
  
"Are you a Newbie?"  
  
"I gu... Yes I am."  
  
"My name is Bear, and I was waiting for some friends."  
  
"Nice to meet you, I'm Te..." she stopped herself, remembering that she had a different name now. "My name is Reisa."  
  
"Nice to meet you too, Reisa. It seems your unfamiliar with online games."  
  
"Actually, yes I am. My friend told me she'd meet me here. Well, two of my friends actually. One should already be online."  
  
"There was a blonde wavemaster here a few minutes ago. Could that be her?"  
  
"Maybe, did you catch her name?"  
  
Bear looked around for a second before answering. "Said her name was Sheina, wherever she got that name."  
  
"That's her!" Teria exclaimed. "Thanks!"  
  
"Hey, Reisa! When you find your friend, I'm willing to talk some more!"  
  
"Yeah, thanks Bear!" Teria called back, walking into the area.  
  
She saw several men grouped together wearing almost the same outfit of all gray. Finally finding the only blonde Wavemaster (knowing what they looked like from looking at the manual really quickly), Teria walked up to her.  
  
"Sheina?"  
  
"How may I help you?" Sheina replied; Teria instantly recognized her voice.  
  
Lowering her voice down to a hiss, Teria answered, "It's me, Teria! But could you call me Reisa instead?"  
  
"No prob! I was just waiting for Reyla to get here."  
  
"You mean Reyla used her real name?"  
  
"Yeah. Let's head to the Chaos Gate."  
  
Following the Wavemaster Sheina, Teria proceeded back to the Chaos Gate, but not before noticing something. A female heavy axe was down in that group, along with another man. Shaking the image out of her head, Teria ran to catch up with Sheina.  
  
Teria found Sheina back at the chaos gate, talking casually with Bear.  
  
"Hello again, Reisa. I see you found your friend."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Where is BT? She told me she'd meet me here to head to Dun Loireag soon!"  
  
"Dun Loireag?" Teria asked Sheina, trying to figure out what that was.  
  
"It's the second easiest server from this one. I wouldn't recommend you going there yet. Considering you're just a Newbie."  
  
A noise was heard, and Bear, Sheina, and Teria looked at the Chaos Gate to see another female wavemaster logging in.  
  
"BT! Over here!" Bear called to the woman.  
  
"Hi Bear. See you have company."  
  
"You've met Sheina before, BT. This is Reisa, a Newbie," Bear introduced.  
  
"Pleasure to meet you, BT," Teria replied.  
  
"Same to you, Reisa was it?" Bt answered. Teria nodded in response.  
  
Bear left the two and headed to the Chaos Gate with BT. They, as Sheina explained it, warped to a different server. After several more minutes waiting, a heavy blade entered the area. She was hardly wearing anything, but it was still enough to keep covered. Another Heavy Blade signed in soon after her, but immediately warped to a different server.  
  
"Reyla!" Sheina called.  
  
"Hey Sheina! Is that... it can't be..." Reyla said, running over to them, and then lowering her voice to a whisper. "Teria?"  
  
Teria nodded, and then whispered back, "It's Reisa in here, okay?"  
  
"Yeah, but where'd you get that name?"  
  
"I just came up with it I guess."  
  
Reyla rolled her eyes. "Well, let's get you some new equipment. Oh wait, first let's let the all-mighty 'Crimson Knights' through."  
  
Sheina held in a laugh, but Teria was only more confused. The axeman Teria had seen earlier, along with another guard, was walking towards them.  
  
"Well, I think this is a new player, Lady Subaru."  
  
"Please state your name."  
  
"My name is Reisa, and yes, I am new here," Teria replied to the two.  
  
"She's a friend of ours," Sheina added.  
  
Subaru nodded, as if she knew Sheina and Reyla very well, and then walked off back towards the place they had come from. Reyla told Teria to give her the 'Reisa Member Address' so that the two could call them whenever.  
  
"Oh yeah, and Bear left this for you," Sheina said, handing Teria something. "His member address. Bear is always being nice to newbies!"  
  
"Well, someone has to! The crimson knights usually aren't that friendly to newbies for some reason. It was really odd that they were nice to you, Reisa!" Reyla sighed. "I know they sure didn't give me a formal greeting like that when I first signed in."  
  
Teria looked at her two friends, somehow managing to give them her member address. There was instantly a beeping in her head, with a request from Reyla to join the party officially. Teria accepted, and figured that Reyla had invited Sheina as well. Reyla dragged the two, more dragging Teria than Sheina, to a store called the Elf's Haven.  
  
"I wish to withdraw some stuff."  
  
"Yes, of course, Reyla."  
  
Teria looked at Reyla, confused. "Do they know you well here?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm not as famous as Lord Balmung or Lord Orca, but I'm sort of well known to most players as a helper to newbies."  
  
"Here is a list of what you have stored, please tell me what you wish to withdraw."  
  
Reyla rolled her eyes as if she already knew the protocol, and started examining the list. She said several things, and the man went to collect them.  
  
"I pulled out some of the higher weapons for you, Reisa. And considering you can wear anything equipment, I pulled out the strongest extra stuff I had," Reyla explained.  
  
Sheina was mumbling something about wavemasters being so limited in their equipment. The man returned and handed the stuff to Reyla, who in turn, gave it to Teria.  
  
"I would ask for a trade," Reyla said as they walked off, "But since you are new and all, I didn't. Plus, we're friends! Hey, do you think it's safe to take Miss Reisa here to Dun Loireag, Sheina?"  
  
Sheina looked at Reyla, readjusting her grip on her staff. Teria had finished equipping her stuff by now as well.  
  
"Yeah, just don't go to a dungeon there. Maybe I'll find Mimiru there."  
  
Not knowing what was going on, Teria decided to stay quite. Reyla lead the three to the Chaos Gate. She seemed to be choosing something, and a moment later, Teria found herself warping out of Mac Anu and into Dun Loireag.  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: I didn't really explain Sheina or Reyla's outfits, but figure they have the same styles as BT and Mimiru (respectively). Anyways, hope you enjoyed, and yes, we are right at the first half of episode one.  
  
Please Review! 


	3. Chapter 3 Role Play

Of Friendship Chapter 3  
  
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A/N: You're back again? Great! Glad to know you are reading this! I'll see what I can do in Dun Loireag, considering I have the little problem of Teria being a little too weak for the dungeons. Reminds me of A-20 in Carmina Gadelica...  
  
~*~  
  
Disclaimer: I SWEAR not has changed since I started!  
  
~*~  
  
"Hey Sheina, isn't that Mimiru over there?" Reyla asked.  
  
Sheina and Teria looked at where Reyla was pointing, and Sheina vigorously nodded.  
  
"Well, maybe I just won't access for awhile," the boy that was with this Mimiru said, who walked off towards the group.  
  
"That is NOT how the game is played!" Mimiru shouted after him, who got up and started to run off of him, not even noticing the trio.  
  
They ran after her and found them at the Chaos Gate.  
  
"If I'm not mistaken, when you are in this game, you can play it however you wish."  
  
"Yeah, I know THAT!"  
  
The boy sighed, and headed towards the Chaos Gate even more. He raised his staff and closed his eyes. He seemed to be trying to log out, but when he didn't, he opened his eyes in shock. Mimiru looked at him confused, as did Teria, Reyla, and Sheina.  
  
"Ya know... I just don't like you." And he left.  
  
"Wha...? What did you just say! STUPID JERK!" she yelled.  
  
"Mimiru!" Sheina shouted at her.  
  
She jumped, and looked at the trio. "Sheina! Reyla! Hey! Wait, how much did you see?"  
  
"From the point of where that boy said that maybe he just won't access anymore," Reyla replied.  
  
Mimiru was probably blushing, but they couldn't tell. She looked at Teria, and grinned.  
  
"So, who's the new one? She looks so much like Lady Subaru of the Knights!" Mimiru said.  
  
It was Teria's turn to blush, and she literally did. "Name is Reisa. And I know, I've met Lady Subaru... Hey, sorry guys, my mom is calling."  
  
"Dinner...?" Reyla asked.  
  
Teria nodded. "Yeah. I'll see all of you tomorrow!"  
  
"Hey, Reisa, here. Have my member address. Call me anytime you want!" Mimiru said.  
  
Teria nodded, and ran towards the Chaos Gate. She made a quick warp back to Mac Anu, and then logged out. After checking her e-mail, knowing she wouldn't have any, she saved her game and turned it off.  
  
Now, the real Teria walked out of her room, brushing back a few stray strands of golden blonde hair behind her ear. She quickly ate her dinner, knowing she probably should get back online. At least for a little bit.  
  
"May I be excuse?"  
  
"Yes, you may."  
  
Teria silently thanked her and went back to her room. After checking for any messages, she sat back in the chair at her desk. Pulling her VA helmet, she grabbed her controller and signed back in.  
  
'New e-mail?' she thought, seeing a 'New!' symbol next to the e-mail part. Selecting it, she found quite a few e-mails. 'Bear, Reyla, Sheina... and, Subaru? I'll save that for last!' she figured, selecting the one from Bear first.  
  
'Just thought I'd send you an e-mail. If you wish, I can take you to a beginner dungeon sometime. Hope you are enjoying the game so far!'  
  
'That was sweet of him,' she figured, closing that one out and looking at the ones from Reyla and Sheina. Nothing much, just some information about this adventure they'd just gone on with Mimiru. Finally, she opened the one from Subaru.  
  
'Hello,  
  
I saw you in Mac Anu, and I introduced myself to you as well. I would like to have a chance to talk with you alone. Please meet me at the Chaos Gate in Mac Anu as soon as possible. I'm including my member address with this e- mail for you, but don't abuse it.  
  
Thank you, The Leader of the Crimson Knights, Subaru'  
  
"I thought she'd want something like that," Teria whispered, logging into the game.  
  
There were some new messages on the BBS, and Teria went to check them.  
  
'CAT PLAYER-CHARACTER WANTED THROUGHOUT THE WORLD'  
  
'That looks important.'  
  
'CAT PLAYER-CHARACTER WANTED THROUGHOUT THE WORLD Posted by: Silver Knight  
  
This is an official notice from the Crimson Knights: A cat player-character is now wanted throughout the world on all servers. Any information on this character should be sent to the Crimson Knights immediately.'  
  
"Yeesh," Teria whispered. "These Crimson Knights are sure bossy. I guess I had better meet up with Subaru though."  
  
Once she was sure there weren't any more new messages, she signed in. Waiting by the Chaos Gate was Lady Subaru, Leader of the Crimson Knights.  
  
"Hello, it's nice to see you came so soon."  
  
"Yeah, same to you," Teria replied.  
  
"Silver Knight, would you please leave us alone?"  
  
The knight next to her bowed and walked off. Subaru motioned towards Teria for her to join her, and the two heavy axes walked off to a private corner.  
  
"What do you want to talk about?"  
  
"I'm just wondering, you are friends with Reyla and Sheina?"  
  
"Yeah, in real life too."  
  
Subaru sighed when she said that. "Oh, sorry."  
  
"You don't need to apologize. I was just... you seem like you could be of great assistance to the Crimson Knights."  
  
"What would I have to do?" Teria asked, curious as to why, on only her first day playing, she would be chosen for this group.  
  
Subaru seemed to be thinking for a bit, as if for what to say exactly. "It's just, I'm carrying a heavy burden with running the knights. And I was just wondering if..." Subaru paused, and Teria heard a sniffle.  
  
"Hey, don't cry. It's okay, go on."  
  
"I was just wondering if you'd like to help me out? Become Lady Reisa of the Knights."  
  
"But, my friends? What about Reyla and Sheina?"  
  
"You can still talk with them, even go on a few adventures. But, if you agreed to help me, you agree that you will be available at almost any time."  
  
Teria thought on how to say what she was thinking. "Well, I'm available all day until school starts where I live."  
  
"If you don't mind me asking... where do you live?"  
  
"I'm over in the United States, and school where I live starts up again in a little over a month. But even then, I'd try to be available as much as possible. All right, I agree Subaru. I will join the knights."  
  
"Thank you," Subaru said.  
  
The two walked back to where Teria had seen Subaru earlier. Silver Knight was there with several other knights.  
  
"How may we help you, Lady Subaru?" Silver Knight bowed.  
  
"I would like for Reisa to become a member of the Crimson Knights, to help out in any situation."  
  
"That is fine with us, Lady."  
  
Subaru nodded, and turned to Teria. Teria smiled back at her, and looked up at Silver Knight, who seemed to be concentrating.  
  
"My lady, I have just received a message that summon in Dun Loireag knows about the cat player-character!" Silver Knight exclaimed.  
  
"Let us be on our way then."  
  
Teria gripped the axe Reyla had given her tightly, glad that she had already made such great friends here. She followed Subaru out of Mac Anu and to Dun Loireag, silently praying that she didn't run into Reyla or Sheina, or both, there.  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: That definitely wasn't what I was planning, but it works out for my plan I guess. It's just that Subaru so happens to be my favorite character in this show!!!  
  
Anyways, please review and let me know what you think so far! 


	4. Chapter 4 Role Play

Of Friendship Chapter 4  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: Yeesh, can't believe I've made it this far. I'm going to attempt to finish off episode one in the chapter, and hopefully make it longer than the previous ones. Anyways, please enjoy!  
  
Blossom_Girl: Thanks so much for reviewing! Don't worry, Teria and Tsukasa aren't going to be friends for a long time! Hope you enjoy this chapter!  
  
~*~  
  
Disclaimer: I own Teria, Reyla, and Sheina, and if I decide to stuff in any more original characters, they are mine as well. .hack belongs to Bandai.  
  
~*~  
  
Teria followed Subaru down one of the bridges of Dun Loireag. They went to the item shop, where the man was supposed to be.  
  
"Lady Subaru, there was a man here to see you, but he left saying that he had to go. He will meet you tomorrow however," the man at the shop said.  
  
Subaru thanked him, and they left. Teria heard someone calling her real name, and realized it was time for her to get in bed to.  
  
"Hey Subaru, I have to go. My mom is calling, and it's getting late. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"  
  
"Good bye, Reisa."  
  
Teria walked over to the Chaos Gate, glad that she wasn't drawing attention to herself yet. The heavy axeman logged out for the day.  
  
Checking the boards, she found nothing new. When she was back at her desktop, she once again had e-mail. This time, from Mimiru, and CC Corporation, USA. Teria opened the one from Mimiru first.  
  
'Hey!  
  
I know you probably won't read this until tomorrow, but oh well. Want to go on an adventure in a low-level dungeon with me tomorrow?  
  
Reply ASAP!'  
  
Teria smiled, and then said into her helmet, "Reply".  
  
'Mimiru,  
  
I'll get back to you tomorrow. Meet me in Mac Anu. I have something to tell you also!'  
  
Sending the message, she flipped over to the one from CC Corporation, USA.  
  
'Hello Reisa,  
  
It is our understanding that you were appointed a Crimson Knight today. We are glad that there is now a USA representative. We will be sending you the same e-mails we send Subaru of the Knights. These e-mails contain valuable information about this game.  
  
It is also our understanding that you just started this game today. We would like to wish you the best in your adventures in "The World"!  
  
CC Corporation, USA'  
  
Teria smiled as she closed out that window and saved it. Turning off the computer, she climbed into bed for a good nights sleep.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Mimiru ran up ahead of Teria and quickly defeated the monster. A tally of EXP Points gained appeared. They had gone to the dungeon of Bursting Passed Over Aqua Field in the Mac Anu server. Mimiru had invited Bear along to help, and together they helped Teria through the first floor.  
  
They were now on the second floor of the dungeon.  
  
"Reisa, why don't you try your hand at a fight? We'll back you up, don't worry," Bear suggestion, adjusting her grip on her weapon.  
  
Teria had learned that Bear was a Blademaster.  
  
"Very well then."  
  
The experienced player lead Teria to one of the rooms that had a Monster Portal in it. When they approached it, two flying enemies appeared. Teria started hacking away at one of them while Bear quickly defeated the other. She saw that she was quickly whittling away HP from the beast.  
  
They defeated the other portal on the floor as well, and then headed to get Teria's first Gott Statue.  
  
"Go on, you open it, Reisa. It is your first, after all," Bear exclaimed.  
  
Teria tapped the chest with her axe and it popped open. Inside were a helmet and a couple of trading items. She gave the trading items to Bear, stating that she didn't need them. Teria decided to keep the helmet and give it to Reyla later.  
  
Bear warped them out of the dungeon with a Sprite Ocarina, and they left the field. When they reached the town, Teria realized she had e-mail.  
  
"Hold on, I have some e-mail," she said, figuring it was probably from Subaru, Silver Knight, or CC Corp.  
  
Logging out, she returned to her desktop to check her e-mail. As she figured, there were several from CC Corp and one from both Subaru and Silver Knight. Deciding to check the CC Corp ones first, she opened those.  
  
'As promised, here is the information. It will be spread out in several e- mail's.'  
  
'Well, at least they keep their promises,' she figured as she scanned the e- mail. Scanning through the others as well, she quickly got to the one from Silver Knight.  
  
'Lady Reisa,  
  
I don't see why Lady Subaru has asked you to join us, but I feel you will become valuable. Please come to Dun Loireag ASAP. Further instructions will be given there.'  
  
Teria rolled her eyes as she closed that out and went over to the one from Subaru.  
  
'Reisa,  
  
Please come over to Dun Loireag. The man with information will be there.  
  
Subaru'  
  
Teria frowned as she backed out of that and signed back in. Bear was still waiting for her.  
  
"Hey, I have to go to Dun Loireag," Teria said, walking down to the Recorder with them closely following.  
  
"How come?" Bear asked.  
  
"Because... because I'm a member of the Crimson Knights now, and there's something I must do there."  
  
Bear looked at Teria suspiciously as she saved her game, and then walked back to the Chaos Gate.  
  
Subaru was there waiting for her. They followed the path they had taken the night before, and Teria caught a glimpse of Mimiru. Mimiru looked away frowning and walked off. The next thing she knew, they were back at the item shop, facing a somewhat fat player.  
  
"Oh, thank goodness you're here!"  
  
"Are you sure that the item you mentioned in the e-mail definitely caused damage to the data?" Subaru asked.  
  
"Well, my friend was careless as well, but the character we traded with was definitely a suspicious character."  
  
"Please, explain," Silver Knight ordered.  
  
"Oh sure. The character was definitely edited... if he had the face of a cat."  
  
"A neko?" Teria asked, remembering some of the Japanese she'd learned off of the Internet a few nights ago.  
  
The man walked off to leave the three in discussion.  
  
"A cat character giving away suspicious items to players," Teria figured.  
  
"I'm sorry, my ladies, but I must go," Silver Knight suddenly exclaimed, and walked off.  
  
The two watched him leave the server, and the two set off walking themselves.  
  
"Reisa, I have a meeting with Lord Balmung and Lord Orca coming up now. I would like for you to accompany me."  
  
Teria smiled at the prospect of meeting even more players. "Of course! I'd love to!"  
  
Subaru smiled, and the two walked to the Chaos Gate. They warped back to Mac Anu, and Subaru told Teria that they are to wait here until they come.  
  
Several minutes later, two men logged in. The first looked almost like Bear, yet he was different in a way. The other was covered in heavy armor, had several wings attached to his outfit, and silver-white hair. They were apparently in a heavy discussion about something.  
  
They looked around and noticed the two girls and walked over to them.  
  
"Hello Lady Subaru," said the man with wings. "Who's your friend?"  
  
"My name is Reisa, and I am a member of the Crimson Knights as of last night."  
  
The man who looked like Bear grinned.  
  
"Let us introduce ourselves then. My name is Orca, and this is Balmung. We are the Descendents of Fianna."  
  
Subaru nodded. "Lord Balmung of the Azure Sky and Lord Orca of the Azure Sea."  
  
"It's a pleasure to meet you two. I'm sure that there's a reason for this meeting, am I correct?"  
  
Balmung nodded, as did Orca.  
  
"Lady Subaru, we would like to help on the search for the cat character," Balmung exclaimed.  
  
"We have found that a character named Tsukasa has been in contact with this player."  
  
'Could that boy Mimiru had been talking to... Could that have been Tsukasa?' There was a sound of people logging in. Subaru, Teria, Balmung, and Orca all looked to see who it was. It was Reyla and Sheina, and they seemed to be in a panic. Teria was the first to their side.  
  
"Reyla! Sheina! What happened? What's wrong?" Teria questioned. Subaru, Orca, and Balmung joined them.  
  
"Lady Subaru! It's Silver Knight! You need to come quick!" Reyla gasped.  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: Well? Huh huh huh? What did you think? I just finished watching episode two again, seeing as I just finished #1. It's gonna be interesting... hmm...  
  
Please review! 


	5. Chapter 5 Guardian

Of Friendship Chapter 5  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: Welcome back! As I said before, this is the start of episode two! It might not take as long to finish, but I'm going to go offline a bit more this time. At least in this chapter I am! I know I stopped abruptly last chapter, but oh well. I think, if you've watched the show, you know what happened!  
  
~*~  
  
Disclaimer: Nothing has changed. Nothing. Zip, zero, nada!  
  
~*~  
  
"Mom, may some of my friends come over?"  
  
"They're probably already on their way, though I guess so."  
  
"Yeah, well tell them when they get here to come to my room. I have some business I need to take care of!"  
  
Teria walked back to her room without another word. She turned on her computer and placed her headset on. Logging in, she found an e-mail from Subaru.  
  
'Reisa,  
  
Silver Knight has just awoken from a coma and has amnesia, or so I heard. Please come to Mac Anu as soon as you get this.  
  
Subaru'  
  
Teria frowned. She heard a doorbell, and figured that at least one of her friends was there. That meant she'd have to hurry up.  
  
Logging in, she didn't even bother to read the BBS. When she logged in, she switched over to Mac Anu and ran to find Subaru and the knights in the crowd.  
  
"Lady Reisa, over here!" Subaru called.  
  
Teria ran down and got onto the boat. Her first time on a virtual boat. It felt weird. She could hear in the background her mom and someone talking.  
  
"Have you heard anything from Silver Knight lately?" Teria asked.  
  
"No, he isn't logged on right now, my lady," one of the knights said, causing Teria and Subaru to sigh.  
  
"Lady Subaru, I'm not sure if you were aware of this, but Silver Knight..."  
  
Subaru turned around to face the knight. Teria looked at him as well.  
  
"Yes, please continue."  
  
"Silver Knight was very fond of you. As a knight, I think he felt a rivalry towards Crim."  
  
The boat they were on came to a stop, and Subaru stepped down to where Teria was standing.  
  
"You are dismissed. Reisa, do you have a chance to talk for a moment?" Subaru asked.  
  
Hearing voices in background, she knew she didn't have much time.  
  
"I don't have much time. Some of my friends are here, including Reyla and Sheina. That's why they aren't logged in right now. I was just wondering... Who's this Crim?"  
  
Subaru stepped off of the boat, as did Reisa. They walked over to the Chaos Gate.  
  
"Crim... Crim was one of the founders of the Silver Knights. He helped me become who I am. But, he left the knights a few weeks ago."  
  
She felt a tap on her shoulder and realized it was her friends.  
  
"Hey Subaru, I gotta go. I'll see you later or something!"  
  
Teria logged out. This time, she decided to check the BBS. There was a message there about Silver Knight.  
  
'Silver Knight of the Crimson Knights in the Hospital Posted By: Salo  
  
Yesterday, Silver Knight got in an encounter with a wavemaster called Tsukasa. There were two eyewitnesses, but they refuse to speak. Silver Knight was found at his terminal monitor yesterday afternoon in a coma. He woke later that day with amnesia.'  
  
Teria glared at it, but logged out of it. She saved it on her desktop and turned the game off. Taking off her helmet, she stared at the blank screen.  
  
"Teria?" asked a male voice.  
  
"Derek! Don't SCARE me like that!" Teria said.  
  
"About time you got off, girl!"  
  
"Reyla, Sheina, can I ask you something?"  
  
"What?" the two asked.  
  
Getting up from her seat at the desk, she crossed her room to where the two were.  
  
"You told Subaru and myself that you saw Silver Knight get killed. I just read a post on the board there, posted by one of the knights. It said there were two eyewitnesses who saw this Tsukasa kill him, but they won't talk."  
  
"Yeah, those two are us. Actually, it's just because we haven't signed in today," Sheina said, shrugging.  
  
Another boy, about 5'5" tall, with messy red hair walked over to them. "You mean, you two are the witnesses?"  
  
Reyla and Sheina nodded.  
  
"Cody, you mean you play it too?"  
  
"Uh-huh. You were the last of our group to actually get that game. There's also been a rumor spreading that another female heavy axeman has been seen with Lady Subaru."  
  
Teria blushed a deep crimson red. Five of her friends were there, and this definitely wasn't the way she wanted to tell them.  
  
"Cody, Derek... Savanna... and especially Reyla and Sheina..."  
  
"What?" the five of them asked together. This only caused Teria to blush even more.  
  
"Yesterday... I was asked by Subaru to join the knights... and I accepted..." Teria muttered.  
  
They all glared at her, and there were a few mumblings of 'I can't believe it' with the girls.  
  
"I knew something was up yesterday when I saw you with Lady Subaru, and with Lord Balmung and Lord Orca!" Sheina exclaimed. "Why are you so embarrassed Teria? There's nothing wrong with that!"  
  
"Really?" Teria asked, looking at Sheina.  
  
"Really!" Reyla replied. "I guess that stuff I gave you will help."  
  
There was a beeping noise and they all looked at Teria's computer.  
  
"Looks like someone's got a message. Hey, how about we all meet up in about ten minutes? In Dun Loireag?" Derek suggested.  
  
"Wait, can Teria even access Dun Loireag?" Savanna asked, brushing back a stranding of bushy chocolate-brown hair.  
  
"Yeah, I can," Teria replied. "Oh, and in The World, call me Reisa. That's my name. Did any of you change your names?"  
  
They all shook their heads no.  
  
"See you then!" Sheina said, and herded her friends out.  
  
Teria heard them left, and went back to her terminal. Putting her VA helmet back on, she logged back in.  
  
'New mail.' She selected the Mail option and saw that she had one from Orca.  
  
'Lady Reisa,  
  
It was a pleasure to meet you yesterday. You seem like a great person, but you seem unsure. Meet me in Dun Loireag today so we can talk. Balmung won't be there.  
  
Orca'  
  
Teria smiled as she close out her e-mail. Logging in, she switched over to Dun Loireag. Not finding Orca there yet, but she did find someone that she knew there.  
  
"Bear! BT!" Teria called to them.  
  
They looked up as she ran towards them.  
  
"Hey you two! What are you doing here?"  
  
"Just talking. I got... killed... earlier. I lost a HOUR of my hard work!"  
  
Teria frowned as she looked at BT, vaguely remembering she'd promise to meet with all her friends. And with Orca.  
  
"Who did it?" Teria asked BT.  
  
"I think his name is Sora. On top of THAT, he left his stupid member address for me!"  
  
Teria laughed, and Bear smiled. "Hold onto that. It'll serve as a reminder to not wander off on your own again. Wait, there's someone else in the world I'm worried about..."  
  
"Who?" BT and Teria asked together.  
  
Bear frowned as he said it. "Mimiru. Reisa, can you call her?"  
  
"Sure, hold on just a minute!" Teria exclaimed, and sent a quick message to Mimiru. She quickly got a reply of 'I'll be right there!'.  
  
They heard someone log in and Teria looked around. Reyla and soon after, Sheina logged in. They were followed by three other people logging in.  
  
"Hey you guys!" Teria called.  
  
"Hey Reisa. Here's Cody, Derek, and Savanna's characters!" Sheina exclaimed.  
  
Teria examined her friend's characters. Cody and Derek were both Long Arms with open shirts showing their bare stomachs. Only thing that separated them was the colors. Cody was wearing Red, and Derek was wearing Black. Savanna was a Twin Blade that had a short skirt on. That was blue. Savanna twirled one of her blades around.  
  
"Hey!" Teria said to them.  
  
"Oh look, there's Lord Orca!" Reyla exclaimed.  
  
They all looked around to see Orca approaching them. Teria broke out of the pack to meet him.  
  
"Hi there. I got your e-mail!" Teria exclaimed. "But can you hold on for just a minute? I'm expecting someone."  
  
"No problem."  
  
A heavy blade logged in at that moment and Mimiru joined them.  
  
"You know, the Crimson Knights spotted the wavemaster Tsukasa earlier today. However, they let him slip away," Bear sighed.  
  
"Are you telling me that the Crimson Knights let him slip away!?" Mimiru exclaimed.  
  
Teria got a message from Orca at that moment with all the details, so she intervened on the conversation.  
  
"They saw him warp in Mac Anu. He has yet to return though," Teria exclaimed.  
  
Mimiru glared at her with a look in her eye that said loud and clear, 'How did you know?'  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: I got a little out of control there. Definitely wasn't as long as I wanted it to be. Next chapter I'm going to have Teria and Orca on an adventure, and then I think I'll have Teria join Mimiru and Bear. Oh, I don't know!  
  
Just review already! 


	6. Chapter 6 Guardian

Of Friendship Chapter 6  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: Back again! Like I said before, this will hopefully cover the rest of episode 2! I don't know how much I'll use Cody, Derek, and Savanna though...  
  
Update: Sorry about the lag on this chapter!  
  
Matakishi Hirata-San: Thanks.  
  
Blossom_Girl: Thanks to you too.  
  
~*~  
  
Disclaimer: I own all original characters. Bandai owns the rest.  
  
~*~  
  
Orca and Teria stood in front of the gates leading to the dungeon. After giving Teria a basic run through of some stuff Bear hadn't shown her the previous day, they had cleared out the field. Now, they were ready for the dungeon. It was a low level dungeon, only at a level 3, just because of Teria. Orca had done most of the fighting so far, as he was far more experienced than Teria.  
  
"Ready?"  
  
"As ready as I'll ever be!"  
  
The two marched through the gates and made it to the first portal. As the portal opened to reveal three monsters, Teria gripped her axe tighter. She had gone to a level two dungeon the previous day with Savanna and Cody to build up a little more, and the two had done all of the fighting. Now that she was with Orca, she knew he'd let her fight some of the monsters.  
  
From the portal came three small monsters. One goblin that was dressed in robes, and two other goblins that weren't dressed. Not knowing which was to go, she waited for some orders.  
  
"Reisa, get the robe-covered one!" Orca ordered, slamming after one of the other goblins.  
  
Complying, Teria ran after the robe-covered goblin and cornered him within ten seconds. She hacked away at him, quickly defeating it. Orca soon joined her, and they continued on through the dungeon.  
  
Just when Teria thought this dungeon would never end, it finally did at the fifth floor. They went into the Gott Statue room to claim the items that were there. Not that it was really worth it, seeing as Teria already had much better items than what she received.  
  
"Keep them," Orca said when Teria offered him the items. "Sell them or trade them off."  
  
"I guess," Teria replied.  
  
The two warped out of the dungeon with a Sprite Ocarina, and they quickly left the field. When they got back to the town, Orca left, saying he needed to meet with Balmung. Teria saved her game, and then went to sell some stuff.  
  
Once she had gotten her virtual money, she headed back to the main walkway, totally failing to notice the Crimson Knights. Looking up on the bridge, she spotted Bear and Mimiru.  
  
"Hi you two!" Teria smiled.  
  
"Should you be down with the Crimson Knights?" Mimiru asked.  
  
"What? Oh, maybe, but... What are you two planning on doing?" Teria asked.  
  
"Speaking of doing something, I got an e-mail from that wavemaster. He wants to..." Mimiru started.  
  
"Wants to what, Mimiru?" Bear asked her.  
  
"He wants to meet me, but he wants to meet me in Dun Loireag."  
  
"Which means he has somehow left THIS server," Bear realized.  
  
"I... want to go with you, but do you think Subaru will...?" Teria wondered.  
  
"E-mail her later and explain that you were hanging out with us," Mimiru immediately said.  
  
"Okay, let's go!" Teria smiled, and nodded.  
  
The group headed for the Chaos Gate and warped over to Dun Loireag. Mimiru entered the keywords and they warped over to where Tsukasa was.  
  
Apparently they were early, but not by much. Almost immediately after they had warped in, so had Tsukasa. There was a flash of lightning in the background, and then the roll of thunder.  
  
"Hi there," Mimiru said cheerfully.  
  
"Why'd you have to bring them along?" Tsukasa sighed.  
  
"Well, you didn't tell me to come alone," Mimiru pointed out.  
  
"If you want, we'll leave," Bear smiled.  
  
"Hey, I want to stay and hear this out!" Teria complained.  
  
"Bear, Reisa, you are fine here!" Mimiru mumbled.  
  
Tsukasa frowned when Mimiru said that.  
  
"Did you see today's board?" Mimiru asked.  
  
"No, I didn't," Tsukasa replied.  
  
"You know you need log out in able to see the board," Bear said.  
  
"Yeah, well, who cares about that stuff anyways!"  
  
Teria stared at him, or more, and the space behind him. Besides the pouring rain, she could make out a dungeon in the background.  
  
"So, what sort of music do you listen to while you are in front of your terminal?" Teria asked the boy. "Unless...?" Tsukasa grinned. "Are you even in front of a terminal?"  
  
"That's right, I'm not in front of a computer terminal," Tsukasa smiled.  
  
Teria gasped, as did Bear and Mimiru. There was a large flash of lightning in the background, followed by a loud rumble of thunder. She could see Tsukasa's shadow clearly now, the eminent lines of a male wavemaster outlined perfectly.  
  
"The World... and all of its wonders. This is my world now, you see." Another flash and rumble.  
  
"Don't be ridiculous!" Mimiru shouted.  
  
"If you moved in the normal way, there'd be no way to move without running into the Crimson Knights guarding the gate," Bear explained. "How can you move between the servers without the use of the Chaos Gate? It just isn't possible!"  
  
"Because, I received the power," Tsukasa smirked.  
  
"From who?" Teria asked, surprised.  
  
"Well..." Tsukasa started.  
  
"Is that what defeated Silver Knight?" Teria shouted.  
  
"That was a different power."  
  
"Different?" Teria wondered, taken aback. "But, you ARE the one that defeated him.  
  
"Yeah. It was me."  
  
"How'd you do it?" Mimiru mumbled. "What kind of power can be used to defeat an opponent so that he's actually physically hurt in the real world!?"  
  
"What?" a surprised Tsukasa asked.  
  
"Silver Knight was found unconscious in front of a terminal monitor. He awoke with amnesia and doesn't remember ANYTHING!" Teria explained to Tsukasa.  
  
"Impossible!" Tsukasa said.  
  
"There isn't anyway to tell if it is true or not, but now they have to find you," Teria explained. "They won't rest until they find you, Tsukasa." She was starting to hate this boy. And she had two choices now. Tell him that he has to come with her to the Crimson Knights or... just leave him be for someone else to find him.  
  
"We can't even prove that you aren't in front of your monitor," Bear pointed out. "They are reaching out to other players via the board to obtain your information. They are closing in on you. The Crimson Knights won't leave you alone."  
  
"So, now what are you going to do?" Mimiru asked slowly.  
  
"I'm not going to do anything now. There is nothing I CAN do," Tsukasa sighed.  
  
"But... why!?" Mimiru shouted at him.  
  
Tsukasa started walking away, turning his back to the group.  
  
"Sorry, I shouldn't have called you at all. Just forgot about it."  
  
Mimiru started after him.  
  
"Oh, I get it. Running away again, huh? Well, you'll be surrounded by the knights soon enough," Mimiru smirked.  
  
"No worries. My guardian will protect me."  
  
"So," Teria said. "That's what defeated Silver Knight for you. But... what about his player huh!? Someone losing consciousness and suffering from amnesia isn't all right! It just isn't right at all!"  
  
"What am I supposed to do about it!?" Tsukasa shouted back, looked down at the ground, and then started running away from them.  
  
"Wait!" Mimiru shouted after him, running after the boy.  
  
There was a strange disturbance in the air between Tsukasa and Mimiru. Teria frowned as she and Bear stared as a barbell-shaped yellowish monster appeared there. In the middle there was what looked like a ring.  
  
"Mimiru! Get away from there!" Teria shouted on instinct.  
  
"What the?" Mimiru asked herself.  
  
Tsukasa stopped in his spot and looked around as his Guardian, it seemed, appeared there. Mimiru started backing away from it.  
  
"Is this...?" Mimiru started.  
  
"If that's the guardian, than I'm not impressed!" Bear said.  
  
The left side of the guardian shot a strange tentacle-like thing at Mimiru, and the other girl dodged it by rolling onto the ground.  
  
"Don't hurt her... Please, don't hurt her," Tsukasa mumbled under his breath.  
  
Mimiru pulled herself up again as another tentacle aimed at where she was lying. She ran back to where Teria was standing.  
  
"Hey, if that's your guardian, then call it back! We are not your enemy!" Bear yelled.  
  
"I know that! I know that. But..." Tsukasa replied.  
  
Bear ran forward and both Teria and Mimiru gasped and got wide-eyed.  
  
"NO!" Tsukasa shouted as the man ran toward the beast.  
  
A tentacle shot out at Bear, and Mimiru back up right into Teria. Teria just stood there in shock. However, suddenly...  
  
A small, cat-like hand was held out in front of the tentacle, and in front of Bear who fell to the ground, sword no longer in his hand. The tentacle stopped, and the owner of the hand, a child-size cat on two legs, floated up in front of the ring. The cat disappeared, along with the guardian.  
  
Bear got up on his feet and moved over to the other two girls. Tsukasa left them, and they warped back to the root town. Teria quickly waved goodbye to the other two and signed out, too shocked to do anything else.  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: Finally got it down! I hope you enjoyed it!  
  
To both sites I post this out: Please, please, please review and let me know what you think, any suggestions, anything! 


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